Hearts, Spades, Diamonds, and Clovers. In 4 years, your life will be over.
That was a good poem I just made from the top of my head. I should write that down...
Chapter 2:
Tests to Retake -
A Chance to Cheat or a Chance to Ruin?
Sakura opened her eyes and abruptly sat up from her bed, looking at the clock.
It was 7:50 AM.
Sakura quickly got up frantically and stumbled to her bathroom to brush her teeth. After she was finished with the bathroom, she ran out and quickly threw open her closet door. She looked around for something to wear.
All she saw were inconvenient, ugly dresses.
Sakura growled in frustration. Fuck it. I don't have time, She thought in a hurry.
She grabbed one and threw it on, grabbing her forehead protecter. She gazed down at it, remembering how naíve she was when she put it on.
She narrowed her eyes and tied it over her head as usual. She took one quick look in her full length mirror once more. Her pink hair was a little frazzled, but she didn't care.
She'd cut it later.
Sakura ran down stairs to the kitchen and to the front door, saying her 'byes' to her mother and father before running out the door and down the street towards the Academy.
I don't have time, She thought and looked up towards the roofs of the buildings she ran by. I'll travel by rooftop.
She jumped up and landed gracefully on a tiled roof. She ran full speed and headed in the direction of the Academy.
As she neared the Academy, she could see one of the windows of her class were open and she hastened her pace. She jumped straight through the open window and landed in an empty seat next to Shikamaru just as Iruka started to call the names of team 3.
There was the loud sound of skidding wood and shifting positions and all heads, excluding Sasuke, turned towards the back corner of the classroom. They saw Sakura who hadn't been there before breathing heavily and her hair askew. Shikamaru was looking at her as if she was crazy.
Sakura glanced down at her old seat, where she had sat between Naruto and Sasuke. It'd seemed that Ino took advantage of Sakura's tardiness and took her seat. She was trying to talk to Sasuke, but he continued to ignore her.
Iruka stared at the sight wide eyed. He sweatdropped and waved to her. "Haruno," He said. "Please refrain from jumping through the windows. Thank you."
She nodded at Iruka and breathed a heavy sigh of relief before she laid her head on her desk tiredly. She was exhausted. She guessed that her stamina wasn't as good as it was in the future.
As Iruka continued to announce the members of the teams, Sakura had drifted off into a dreamless sleep and Shikamaru sleeping right next to her. They were quietly snoring in sync.
Ino turned back and had tried to wake her up a couple of times to brag and bet that she'd get on Sasuke's team but she failed to do so. In frustration, she gave up and continued to try to start a conversation with Sasuke who continued to stare out the window, ignoring her.
Seriously, Ino thought, glancing at her ex best friend. What is up with Forehead today?
Minutes later...
"...Team 7!"
Sakura woke up with a start, nearly knocking over Shikamaru in the process and he woke up.
Iruka continued,"Sakura Haruno..."
Now he had Sakura's full attention. She listened closely and leaned her head on her hand in anticipation, even though she already knew what he was going to say.
She mimicked the words as Iruka said them.
"Sakura Haruno..." She lipped and Shikamaru sideway glanced at her curiously.
"Naruto Uzumaki..." She lipped again and Shikamaru looked at Iruka to Sakura shocked. Sakura didn't notice his stare and Naruto jumped up and cheered.
"And Sasuke Uchiha." Sakura didn't lip his name. Instead, she glared knives into the back of his head as other girls started yelling in protest at Iruka and Sakura in the background. Shikamaru's gaze shifted between Sasuke and Sakura suspiciously.
She isn't fangirling. I repeat. She is NOT fangirling, Shikamaru thought, panicking. He turned away, a drop of sweat trickled down his temple with panic. Something really is wrong. This is serious.
Sakura stopped listening and looked out the window. Something caught her attention and she side glanced at Shikamaru. His back was turned to her and his hands were on his temples in a strongly confused manner. An aura of extreme panic and confusion was emitting from him and Sakura raised an eyebrow at with innocent curiosity.
She shrugged it off, guessing it was a guy thing, and turned her head to look out the window.
Not again, She thought and her expression turned into determination. I won't make any mistakes. Not this time.
Minutes later after the teams were assigned, they were dismissed for lunch and were told to meet with their sensei's after.
Outside with Sakura...
She walked down the stone path towards the stone bench she used in her other life, holding a box of dango she quickly bought and a bamboo bottle of tea.
She sat down and was deep in thought.
Thoughts about Sasuke.
She gritted her teeth together, the grip on the bamboo bottle tightening and it cracked. She glared down where her lunch laid untouched on her lap and seethed.
Baka Sasuke. Stupid. Dum. Idiot Sasuke, She thought angrily.
She was still angry at Sasuke. She held a grudge against him. Not because he caused her death, but because he caused the people that cared about him so much pain. Even when Naruto insisted that he would save him, she knew he too was also angry with Sasuke for the same reasons, although he didn't show it or dwell on it.
Then she realized she was thinking about Sasuke. Again.
She sighed irritably. She continued to glare down at her lap and growled before putting the leaking cracked bottle down next to her and forcing the box open, taking a stick of dango. As she bit off the strawberry flavored one at the top, she thought it was delicious and she felt a little happy. For once in a while, she smiled. A gentle smile.
She put the box to the side and held the stick of dango in her hand, savoring the taste of strawberries.
This is nice, She thought, still smiling slightly. I haven't-
She felt a familiar presence and her guard was up in a second. She looked up, the stick of dango in her mouth.
Across from her, Sasuke leaned against a tree with his arms crossed, smiling at her.
Sakura narrowed her eyes at him, still chewing, and turned her head to look away, not blushing. At all.
She glanced at Sasuke from the corner of her eyes suspiciously. Something told her that this was not the Sasuke she knew. The way he smiled so easily, the way he was so relaxed. The way he walked towards her - Wait, what?
"Sasuke" was now standing in front of her and he was still smiling.
She knew exactly who it was before she sensed his chakra signature.
He spoke up first. "Sakura," He said, trying to sound cool. "Your forehead is so wide and shiny it makes me feel like kissing it."
Sakura sighed and put down the empty skewer down in the box. She looked up at "Sasuke" and gave him a long cold stare, her eyes uncaring and bored. Her lips were set in a firm line.
It set "Sasuke" into a cold sweat and he started getting nervous.
He stuttered,"S-so, Sakura," He sat down next her. He smiled at her, trying to look as calm as he could. "I want to ask you something."
Sakura nodded at him, staring at him coldly.
"What do you think about Naruto?"
Sakura blinked. I knew it.
She sighed again and stood up before she stood in front of him. She moved so she was leaning in front of him and her face would be a few inches in front of his.
"Sasuke" leaned back and blinked a few times, confused. He flushed a little.
"N-Nani? What are you doing?" He asked. She closed her eyes and leaned in more closer, making the distance between them smaller and smaller.
"Sasuke's" eyes widened in realization and he leaned in a little too as he closed his eyes. They were only centimeters apart.
He continued to lean in and...
He fell over.
He scrambled to sit up, shock written all over his face and he looked up. Sakura loomed over him, a dark and serious expression replaced the cold, blank stare she'd worn.
A drop of sweat trickled down "Sasuke's" temple as he nervously smiled up at her.
"Uhhh...so," He spoke up nervoulsy and raised an eyebrow. "No kiss?"
Sakura rolled her eyes and raised an eyebrow back at him before she spoke. Her voice was lazy and indifferent.
"Naruto, you actually thought I was going to kiss you?"
There was a puff of smoke and the spot on the bench that "Sasuke" had occupied was filled with a pouting Naruto.
"How'd ya know it was me?" He asked curiously, disappointment lacing his voice.
Her face was serious and her lips were set in a firm line. She held up a finger towards him.
"First off, Sasuke doesn't let his guard down," She explained, referring to when "Sasuke-transformed" Naruto fell over. Then she held up two fingers.
"Second, Sasuke doesn't smile at girls. In fact, he doesn't smile at all. He mopes."
Naruto looked at Sakura, his brow furrowed in confusion as he processed this information she was giving him.
She then held up three fingers. "Last but not least, third, Sasuke doesn't care for other people. He is heartless," She said coldly and her eyes narrowed at nothing as she said that last part.
Naruto's eyes widened for a moment as he'd listened. This isn't like Sakura-chan at all, He thought. But being Naruto, he put it aside. For now.
Sakura sat back down and held out a stick of dango towards him as she raised an eyebrow again, silently offering him it. She was acting as if what she had said was normal.
Naruto shook his head at the offering. "No thanks, I'm good," He declined.
Sakura shrugged and gathered her dango box before she stood up again and popped the stick of dango into her mouth. She turned to walk away down the path, but before she took a full step, she stopped and turned back to Naruto.
"That, and it wasn't your chakra signature," She added, nonchalantly. Naruto stared at her with shock as she turned and walked away.
As his eyes trailed after her, he wondered what happened to the nice and loud Sakura he knew.
He was startled when he heard a menacing and feral-like growl coming from the opposite direction of where Sakura walked away.
"NA-RU-TO!" Naruto turned back to find Sasuke trudging down the path angrily towards him, his fists clenched and his mouth in a snarl.
Naruto scooted away from him, still sitting on the bench. He sweat dropped nervously.
"H-hey, Sasuke! How's it goin'? Where were you?"
Sasuke stopped in front of Naruto and growled,"You-"
He stopped to glanced down, still frowning. He looked back at Naruto, pointing downward.
"Did you seriously piss yourself?"
Naruto blinked, confused and he looked down at his lap. It was soaked with green tea. Next to him, was an empty cracked bamboo bottle.
He looked back up at Sasuke, panicking. "NO!"
Later after lunch...
Kakashi walked down the hall, towards his new team. He was in deep thought.
Is the Hokage really serious? He thought.
He was standing outside the door now and he sighed tiredly before he reached to slid the door open. He was about to step in when he felt something fall on his head and land on the floor with a thud.
It was a stupid chalkboard eraser.
I don't see any teamwork here, He thought. But they could have planned this together.
His lone eye that wasn't hidden behind his forehead protecter moved to scan the room. The last Uchiha, Sasuke, sat closest to him, hands intertwined under his nose and ignoring anyone and everyone. The Kyuubi jinchuriki, Naruto, was standing not far from him, laughing and tears were forming at the corners of his eyes. Then his eye trailed to the far end of the room, where the normal, civilian-born girl known as Sakura sat on a chair gazing out the window, not paying any attention to her new teammates.
I definitely don't see any teamwork here, He thought.
He spoke up after Naruto finished laughing off.
"Meet me on the roof," He instructed before he disappeared in a puff of white smoke.
As Naruto and Sasuke left, no one noticed, but there were teardrops on Sakura's desk.
She had been weeping in silence. The whole day and yesterday after she had found out she was living in the past, she had been holding back with every fiber of her being from hugging every one of her friends, her family. But she knew she couldn't show she was from the future. She knew she couldn't tell the truth. Not to anyone.
She quickly wiped them away with the back of her hand.
Crying, She thought, angrily as she stood up. Is a weakness. There is no use in crying and there is no room for weaknesses.
She made her way out of the classroom and up the stairs to the roof. Determined, she thought, This will be the last I cry. I promise.
Minutes later on the roof...
Kakashi observed his new team with critical eye, without showing it of course. He quietly noted Sakura's face, which looked like she had been crying with the slight trails of dry tears on her face. If he wasn't a jounin, he may have not notice it. The other two sure didn't.
The three new graduates were sitting on the steps next to each other, Naruto in the middle while Sasuke sat to his right with hands folded under his nose again and Sakura's head leaning on her hand on her knee to his left. Although, she sat with a light distance between her and the other two, enough to make it unnoticeable.
Almost unnoticeable.
He was the first to speak up. "So tell me about yourselves," He said.
No one spoke. They obviously didn't know what to say. Except the pink-haired girl, but Kakashi and the other two didn't know that.
Kakashi sighed,"Tell me your names, likes, dislikes, hobbies, dreams for the future," He shrugged. "Stuff like that."
He motioned to Naruto. "You go first."
Naruto grinned confidently. "I'm Naruto Uzumaki," He announced enthusiasictally. "I like - no - love -"
Sakura cut in. She had been silent for a while.
"Why don't you go first?" She asked Kakashi as innocently as she could, but her voice came out low. Still sounds like a girl but low. It's hard to act innocent when you've experienced war and heartbreak at the same time. But it seemed convincing. "We don't even know your name."
Kakashi pointed at himself, pretending to be confused. "Me?"
"I'm Kakashi Hatake. Things I like and things I hate," He paused to think before resuming. "I don't feel like telling you that."
Naruto looked at him in confusion. Sakura sweatdropped and her brow twitched in annoyance with the slightest movement.
That's because you don't want us to know that you like reading your shitty-ass porn all day and hate when you someone disturbs you, She thought, annoyed.
He continued. "My dreams for the future," He paused again to think. "I've never really thought about it. As for my hobbies...I have lots of hobbies."
They didn't say anything, but Sakura and Naruto were sure thinking the same thing, even if Sakura already kne that was going to happen.
This was pointless, They thought.
"Okay, now back to you," He said as he nodded to Naruto. "You were saying."
Naruto fiddled his forehead protecter as he restarted, using Kakashi's little intro as a guide.
"Beleive it! I'm Naruto Uzumaki," He announced enthusiastically again. "I like instant ramen in a cup and I really like the ramen Iruka-sensei got me at Ichiraku ramen shop. But I hate..."
Kakashi sweatdropped at Naruto.
"...And my future dream is," Naruto paused for dramatic affect. "To be the greatest Hokage! Then the whole village will stop disrespecting me and start treating me like a somebody. Somebody important," He added.
Oh, he's grown up in a very interesting way, Kakashi thought. He noticed Sakura had a small, gentle smile that was almost unnoticeable. To those two boys at least.
He sighed, "Alright, next."
There was a moment of silence. Sakura stayed quiet until Sasuke finally decided to introduce himself.
"My name is Sasuke Uchiha," He said. "I hate a lot of things and I don't particularly like anything."
His face had a dark and determined look as he continued darkly, "What I have is not a dream, because I will make it a reality. I'm going to restore my clan and destroy a certain someone."
Just as I thought, Kakashi thought.
Sakura rolled her eyes, annoyed, and Kakashi noted that tiny act of hers too.
There was another moment of awkward silence until Kakashi spoke up. "Okay. Last one," He said as he turned to look at the silent, pink-haired girl.
Sakura nodded at him. "I'm Sakura Haruno," She said in a normal tone. If you call robotic a human tone of voice.
"I like the color," She paused to think and resumed. "- red and dango. I don't have to tell you what I hate." Her voice hardened at that last part. "And I don't have to tell you my dreams or hobbies," She concluded lightly.
Naruto gave her a questioning look and Sasuke continued to ignore them.
"Good, you're each unique and you all have your own ideas. We have our first mission tomorrow," Kakashi said, casually. He ignored the awkwardness.
After they realize they have to pass a survival test...
Later that night at the training grounds...7:50 PM
Sakura walked through the trees and stood at the edge of a clearing. She sighed tiredly.
I hope it works, She thought.
It better. Or you are fucked, Mato replied, straightforward.
Sakura restrained herself from mentally flicking Mato off and focused her chakra into her fist slowly.
So far so good, She thought. My chakra control is still good. Next comes the hard part.
She raised her fist and looked down the ground in front of her. She narrowed her eyes and aimed at a spot.
Okay. Here goes.
She brought her fist down and the second her fist made contact, she released her chakra into the ground. She heard the sound of rocks cracking and she stood up straight. She observed her work, disdainfully.
It only made a crack and her knuckles were scratched pretty badly.
Sakura cringed in pain. Argh! Okay, that hurt a little, She thought.
Hey, look on the bright side, Mato said, enthusiastically.
Sakura clenched her teeth in frustration.
What bright side? She thought angrily. It's not even one fourth as big as the one's I made months before I took the chunnin exams the second time. And I was in my eighth month of training! I was barely able to make a small crater!
Maybe so, but it's bigger than the first time you tried it, neh? It's 6 inches long, Mato said.
Sakura rolled her eyes. She concentrated chakra into her left hand and held it over the scrapes on her knuckles, focusing on healing the broken tissue and cells and her chakra turned a minty green.
I can't use medical ninjutsu well either, Sakura thought sadly. She had tried to heal the scrapes fully, but she only managed to close them a little. And it wasn't even close.
My chakra levels aren't as high either, She thought, realizing that also explained the small results.
She would have to train the whole night without breaks to at least make a tiny crater the size of her fist, which was small and petite for her lean figure.
She sighed.
This is going to be a long night, She thought, tiredly.
Early the next morning...2:30 AM
Sakura was on the verge of collapsing by the time she felt like she was good. She had trained nonstop the whole night, with only two two minute water breaks and three minutes to meditate so she could replenish a little chakra. When she finally finished, she grinned at the sight. The training ground she used was full of cracks, medium size craters, and debris.
She beamed proudly and fell, laying on her back in the middle of the broken training field.
She looked up at the slowly brightening sky. The sun was just rising over the horizon and the sky was clear of clouds.
Sakura sighed happily.
Peace was all there is in this time line. I miss this, She thought, happily remembering the good times she had in her first life with her friends and family.
Then Sakura's face became grim and she gritted her teeth, pissed.
No. As I'm laying here, doing nothing, my enemies are scheming and readying themselves to destroy my home, She thought, angry at herself for indulging in selfish bliss.
Stiffly, she attempted to sit up. Unfortunetly, she'd pushed herself to her limits while she was training and fell back down. She breathed heavily and gazed sadly at the bright and peaceful sky.
Hey, Mato, She called. You there.
There was a short moment of silence before she replied.
Yeah, I'm here. What do you want?
Sakura was quiet, thinking, before she spoke. What happened to everyone else?
Sakura couldn't see her, but Mato raised an eyebrow, curiously. What do you mean?
I mean, I'm here in this time, but what happened to the others. Naruto, my friends, my parents, She said quietly and paused, daring herself to say it. And Sasuke.
Mato stayed silent, pondering on what to say. It was silent for so long, Sakura could feel the blood pulsing in her neck and hear the calm beat of her heart.
It felt like hours but was actually agonizing seconds until Mato finally spoke.
I don't know, She said quietly. Her face was serious, but her eyes looked happy and sad at the same time. She smiled gently. But Sakura couldn't see it.
Mato decided to change the subject. What's up with you? It's not like you to talk. Much less ask questions, She stated, furrowing her brow in confusion.
Sakura shrugged. I'm just curious, She said, nonchalantly. Only a while ago had she been gazing sadly at the sky. She was obviously hiding her true feelings. She felt like she would cry if she actually let them out.
Mato shrugged it off and Sakura spoke again.
She asked, How did you that?
Mato gave her a look. Hm?
How did you bring me back in time? What about time pardoxes and stuff?
Mato paused to think, pondering on how to explain. Well, I wanted to avoid anything that could happen to your own body first, She explained. I should start from the beginning.
There are three critical parts that make us human. A sound mind, body and soul. I wanted to leave your corpse undamaged. Or at least not more damaged than it already was. A human can not live without a soul. Since you were already dying at the time, I thought it would be okay if I also took your mind. Just before your soul could crossover, I took your mind and soul and traveled into the past.
Sakura nodded, listening intently as Mato continued.
I traveled to the past to the day before Team 7 was formed. When I stuffed — put, Mato corrected frantically. — your soul and mind into your 12 year old body, your 12 year old self fell asleep.
Sakura broke in. What happened to my 12 year old self? Then Sakura thought about something and asked worriedly, Was it transfered into my dead body?
Mato shook her head. No, I would have to do that manually. It's still there, Mato assured her. Since your 17 year old mind and soul was wiser and stronger, it dominated your twelve year old body and took control. Your twelve year old soul and mind are just unconscious. You could say they're in a coma.
I also wanted to avoid a time paradox... Mato had to pause. She had to think of a reason, but she coudn't think of an excuse. For various reasons. Whatever you do in this time could affect the future. But time paradoxes can only be caused if a body with both a mind and soul travel into a different time.
Sakura didn't understand why Mato wanted to avoid a paradox, since that was what they were basically doing, but she ignored it and shook her head. Something else was pulling at her curiosity. Her brow furrowed in confusion. I don't get it. Then where is my twelve year old mind and soul?
It's there. I mingled your soul and mind together. Lucky for you, it didn't cause any deformities, Mato said, smiling mischievously.
Sakura sweat dropped nervously. What do you mean by deformities?
Mato shook her head at her, mischievously and smiled again. Oh never mind!
Sakura shrugged it off and realized something. She couldn't believe she hadn't noticed before. What happened to Inner?! She asked, panic in her voice.
Huh? Mato said and looked to her left. Oh, Inner? Yeah, she's here. I just put her on mute. She's really annoying.
In Mato's white realm inside Sakura's mind, Inner stood a few feet away from Mato, chained to a steel post with metallic duck tape over her mouth. She was wriggling in her captivity of chains and her eyes narrowed at her in anger. She tried to yell out something, but it was muffled from the duck tape.
Mato walked over to her and ripped the tape off her mouth. Inner gasped and cursed in pain.
"Damn it! That fucking hurt!" She glared at Mato and added, "Next time you want to exclude me from the conversation, you can suck my —"
She was silenced when Mato smirked and happily slapped the duck tape over her mouth again.
Sakura let out a sigh of relief, knowing Inner was still with her and chuckled, imagining what they did in her head and matching the dialogue.
Mato turned away from Inner's struggling body and put her hands on her hips. She said to Sakura, still smirking, See? Nothing to worry about.
Sakura nodded in relief as her eyelids flutter closed, and she drifted into another dreamless sleep.
6 hours and 50 minutes later...8:20 AM
Sakura awoke, eyes snapping open in surprise, to Inner screaming in her mind. SAKURA, WA-KEY, WA-KEY! YOU'RE GOING TO BE LATE!
Shakily, Sakura sat up and rubbed her eyes with the back of her hands. She yawned, "What time is it?"
Inner yelled grumpily and Sakura guessed it was because of what Mato did to her. It's time for you to get a fucking watch! Now get your ass moving! It's past eight!
Sakura stretched her arms and legs out and yawned again. So what? Kakashi's usually like 3 hours late, She said.
Inner face palmed and gritted her teeth. You were supposed to meet up at 5, Dumbass, She said, frustrated.
Sakura yawned again and scratched her back. It took her a few seconds to process this.
Then her eyes widened and she abruptly stood up. She thought. I'm going to be late!
She took one step and stumbled. She looked down at her sore body frustratedly. Sakura gritted her teeth and reluctantly, through the pain, made her way into town.
She wasn't going to fight Kakashi in an inconvenient, dirty, torn dress.
Nope.
A little later...8:30 AM
Kakashi turned to look back at Sakura, who was several yards away, running full speed towards them. He immediately noticed her new attire. And it wasn't a girly dress like before.
The day they met, after their meeting, Sakura went straight to the tailor store. Well not straight. She had gone home and designed her new clothes herself, made for felxability. She left and gave her designs to a family friend who owned a big clothing store in town and payed them in advanced to make her clothes. She payed extra, so they would have it done by tomorrow morning.
(A/N: Gomen. I am too lazy to bother describing Sakura's new outfit. She wears a smaller version of her clothes from Naruto the movie: The Last. So just picture 12 year old Sakura in that! She still has long hair though. On with the story!)
She stopped next to Naruto, resting her hands on her knees and taking deep breaths. Kakashi and Naruto stared at her while Sasuke continued to ignore them as usual.
"Sakura, you're three hours late," Kakashi said.
Sakura looked up and glared at him, not harshly as she did to Sasuke though. It was more tired and grumpy.
"Please," She scoffed. "I bet you got here minutes before I did." Sakura's body suddenly stiffened slightly at what she said.
Crap, She thought, panicked, still keeping a straight face. He doesn't know that I know him. Did he notice? Dear Kami, please don't notice!
"Hm," Kakashi didn't say anything. He couldn't say anything to that. You can't beat the facts. But how did she know that? She didn't even see him come appear out of no where like the other two. She arrived about ten minutes later.
"Fine," He said, brushing it off. He already knew he was infamous for being really late than the designated time. She probably heard about it from some other people. Then again, it doesn't hurt to be a little more cautious. He would find out some other time.
"As punishment for being late, I won't explain anything to you on what we're doing. You're going to have to figure that out on your own," He instructed sternly.
Sakura shrugged. She could guess on what they were doing...and how it would end.
"OK," Kakashi started. "When I say start, you start."
Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto, who was grinning confidently, nodded.
"Ready," Kakashi warned. "...Start!"
They disappeared.
Sakura hid several yards away, covering herself from view by standing behind thick branches high in a tree. From where she was standing, she had the perfect view of Kakashi, who stood calmly in the middle of the field near a creek. Then Naruto came in like a wrecking ball.
Loud and destructive.
I'll wait, She thought as she watched the scene with amusement and she smirked confidently. Patience is a virtue. He's going to give us another chance anyway. I'll test my strength when he's done with him.
Outwardly, her face showed disgust as she thought of him. There was a dreadful feeling in her chest, but she ignored it.
Before she knew it, Kakashi had already disappeared.
Sakura's eyes widened as she felt a presence behind her. She quickly turned to find Kakashi making a hand sign. Leaves fell and she suddenly felt very tired, enough to sleep right on the spot.
As she started to fall back, she realized he was casting a genjutsu and as tired as she was, she used as much strength she could muster and broke the genjutsu just as she landed.
She yelped in slight pain and sat up.
Damn, She thought, exasperated. Should've seen that one coming.
Several minutes later...with Sasuke and Kakashi
Next thing he knew, he was neck deep into the ground. He growled at Kakashi, who was kneeling in front of him.
I almost had it, He thought, frustrated. I almost had it!
Then in a flash of red and pink, he heard the sound of rocks shattering and saw debris flying everywhere.
He stared, shocked at the scene before him and sweat dropped.
Sakura stood in front of him, back turned to him, and in a fighting stance. She had done an ax kick, coming from up behind Kakashi and aiming for the spot where he had been standing.
Kakashi had dodged, back flipping several feet away.
Hm, He thought. Another one. Is she defending him? Or is she out for herself?
Sakura came at him again with her chakra enhanced fist raised. He dodged again as if it was nothing, but Sakura's fist continued on its path and she hit the ground Kakashi had been standing on moments before. The sound of rocks breaking and cracking filled their ears and Sakura smirked at their disbelieving faces.
There was a crater the size of two Sasuke's. Sasuke swallowed at the sight.
Sakura glanced at her fist. The black gloves she wore were slightly worn and were almost ready to rip. She would have to travel to the Land of Iron to get the actual gloves she'd worn in her first life. The pair she was given in the Land of Iron were high quality and were made for combat. They could withstand any damage any normal pair of gloves should have taken. She called them her Lucky Clovers. She had been wearing them when her missions were successful, passed the Chunnin exams, and fought Sasori.
She looked up at Kakashi and her eyes widened. Kakashi was gone.
She quickly glanced to either side of her and turned behind her. Then she looked up. No sign of him on land. Sakura smiled. She raised her fist and brought it down.
Just as Kakashi was about bring her into his Head Hunter Jutsu, she broke the ground he was under. Which was right under her feet.
The ground caved in on him and he stood in his spot, his eyes wide as saucers and he sweat dropped.
The files didn't say anything about these skills, He thought, confused. Where did she learn this? I don't remember hearing Tsunade-hime having another apprentice. His body became more tense than around most gennins, like when he pushed Sasuke away right as their fight ended.
Sakura smirked, but her confidence was shortened. She noticed a change in Kakashi and she narrowed her eyes.
He was going to get serious. Without the Sharingan.
That was what she'd her, getting Kakashi to use his Sharingan against her would be the ultimate complement.
It pissed her off.
She gritted her teeth and this time, jumped at him, attempting to give a side kick to him in the face.
Like she anticipated, Kakashi caught her leg in his hand and he was shocked. Sakura hadn't put too much chakra, but the small amount she had released into him sent a violent shiver into his body, like his bones were trembling from the inside out. It was as if she sent electricity into his body. Then she tried to punch him and he caught her fist in his other hand. Luckily, she didn't even try to put chakra in that one, otherwise he wouldn't be able to recover from that one as quickly as the first attack.
Sakura glanced at the bells, smirking, and Kakashi realized what she had been doing.
He's wide open.
I'm wide open!
Sakura twisted and swiftly reached down to grab a silver bell. It was in her grasp, touching her palm, when her eyes widened and she was sent flying back. She managed to land on a hand spring and she pressed a hand to her stomach painfully. She looked around. Kakashi had kicked her in the stomach and disappeared.
Kakashi watched her grit her teeth in frustration and punch a crater into the ground from his high perch in a tree several yards away, chakra hidden.
This kid, He thought suspiciously. Is not what she seems.
He looked at both her and the buried young Uchiha, who was looking at her with a surprised expression. Somehow, she did the exact same thing Sasuke had did to him and if he hadn't realized sooner, she could have gotten the bell. He knew she wasn't watching and just happened to find their fight finished with Kakashi as the victor. He hadn't sensed her chakra, or her presence lingering.
They had also been out for themselves.
Those two are really something.
Then he heard the strangled cry of a frustrated animal caught in a trap. He sighed, tiredly.
He would hide with Naruto, until time was up.
After time was up...
After Kakashi had disappeared, Sakura had happily left Sasuke to search for Kakashi. But in their last few hours of their time limit, she was not able to find him.
Naruto was already tied up in the middle and Sasuke was eating in silence to Naruto's right. Sakura was the last to reach the posts and she hid a confident grin as she took a boxed lunch. She leaned against the wooden post to Naruto's left. Then Kakashi popped in, his hands in his pockets and a nonchalant look on his face.
"So I have decided that...oh who am I kidding. I'm just gonna be straight forward with you guys," Kakashi said, exasperated. "You all..."
The three leaned in towards him, anticipating his answer.
"Fail."
Their jaws dropped...except Sakura's, who was confident in what she "knew" was going to happen. Naruto was the first to speak.
"What do you mean 'We fail'?" He asked in disbelief. He struggled in his place.
"I mean what I said. You. Fail."
Sasuke looked as if he was ready to beat someone to death. He already broke his pair of chopped sticks in two. Sakura was silent though, still feeling confident, but she had to play along. She couldn't give anything away. But for some reason, she felt like something was off. This wasn't what exactly happened in her last life and she felt like Kakashi was being completely serious. Sakura showed no emotions as she looked Kakashi, but her grip on her chopsticks tightened slightly.
But it seemed that Sasuke calmed down and gazed at Kakashi with little relief.
"We still go back to the Academy, right?" He asked, but he sounded sure that was what he was going to do. He felt confident.
Kakashi's eyes widened a moment, looking as if he realized he forgot something.
"Oh, yeah. I almost forgot to mention. Yeah," He said, trying to sound guilty. He didn't. "I'm dropping you from the program. Permanently."
Now Sasuke looked liked he was about to beat someone to death and Sakura glanced at him with anticipation. She readied herself.
Just as Sasuke grabbed his kunai from his holster and was about to sprint to Kakashi, Sakura was standing behind him and gripping the back of his high collar tightly. She stared at him blankly when he turned to glare up at her.
They stood there, giving each other looks, and Sakura waited several seconds till Sasuke finally gave in and calmed down enough to sit back down. But when Sakura let go of his collar, instantly he dashed towards Kakashi with kunai poised.
Sakura had also knew this would happen and stood in place, uncaring that Sasuke was pressed into the ground by Kakashi. Her face was still blank as Kakashi spoke in a serious tone.
"All three of you acted selfishly. Three man-squads and only two will pass? Have you even seen a two-man squad?! You didn't even stop to think that I was testing your teamwork." Then he turned to look at Sakura.
"Sakura, kill Naruto and or else I'll kill Sasuke."
Sakura didn't speak and Naruto's gaze swiveled nervously between her and Kakashi with panic, afraid he was going to die at her hands. Sakura lowered her head slightly, causing her fringe to curtain over her hooded eyes.
"See, this is the type of situation I'm talking about. Where someone is taken captive and someone is forced to sacrifice one person. But in this world, that's a win-lose situation," He sighed and let go of Sasuke. Sasuke quickly got up and walked back to his seat, his eyes hooded behind his bangs. Sakura still stood there behind Sasuke, like a statue.
"This is one of the reasons why teamwork is so important. There will be a time where you'll have to choose and teamwork can get you out of it. You all will be dropped from the program. "
Kakashi sighed and turned to walk away. Just as Kakashi took a step, Sakura spoke up.
"Wait!"
With Kakashi's back still turned to them, he looked back with a questionable look. "Hm?"
With eyes still hidden and hooded, Sakura gritted her teeth before sighing, calming herself down. In a soft tone, she spoke.
"Please pass Naruto and...Sasuke," She pleaded softly. No one didn't see it, but Kakashi's eyes widened in the slightest. He was taken aback by the sudden change in attitude. Now she had Kakashi's full attention. He turned so his front side face them too.
"Hm? Why should I do that?"
Sakura struggled to put her thoughts into words. "B-Because," She stuttered. She took a deep breath. She decided she'd just get it over with. She looked up and straight into Kakashi's eye.
"They are my teammates. I will take full responsibility for our failure."
They were all caught by surprise at what she said. Sasuke and Naruto's eyes widened as they stared at her, Kakashi's only slightly again. Sakura continued.
"To be honest, I knew teamwork was the answer from the start," She said truthfully. She looked at the ground, avoiding everyone's gaze. "But I was selfish and wanted to test my ability against a jounin. Gomen, Kakashi-sensei. I am the one at fault. I should have tried to convinced Naruto and Sasuke that we should work together to try to get the bells. I am the one to blame. So." Sakura looked back up at Kakashi again, determination hardening her jade eyes.
"Please pass Naruto and Sasuke. Since I am the one at fault, I will be the only one to be dropped from the program."
Kakashi was silent as he stared at the pink-haired girl. He could hear the honesty in her voice and see the truth in her eyes. The determination to get her teammates to pass made her even more believable, not that he doubted her. He believed her the second she spoke the truth. But there was something missing. Undoubtedly, she was speaking the truth, but when it came to the young Uchiha she immediately distances herself from him, making their teamwork incomplete. He would have to test them even more. Starting now.
He nodded in understanding and Sakura started walking towards Kakashi. "Very well. You will be the only one to be dropped from the program. So -"
Sasuke broke in, making Sakura stop and turn back to them. "No," He said."I won't accept this."
This girl has the nerve to sacrifice herself for them. He wouldn't let that happen. He was supposed to be the strong one. He was an Uchiha. He was supposed to be the strong one. But no. His ass was saved by a fangirl - no - a former fangirl. But his Uchiha pride wouldn't let her do that. No sir.
He stood up and glared at Kakashi. Kakashi could see there was something in his eyes, like...fire. A blue flame that refused to be put out. He didn't understand what it was though. Determination? Will? He didn't know, but he could tell Sasuke wasn't going to take no for an answer.
"I'm not going to let you save my ass again," Sasuke said to Sakura, glaring at her as well and her eyes widened. He turned back to Kakashi. "Kakashi-sensei, we're a team. So we should all get dropped together otherwise it would be unfair. Besides it's also my fault that we had not considered teaming up against you. As an Uchiha, I should have realized it sooner."
"Plus," He added before avoiding their gazes and what he said, he said it so quietly they almost didn't hear it. "She deserves to pass."
Sasuke had a microscopic blush on his cheeks that was unnoticeable to Kakashi. He really couldn't believe he just lowered his pride to admit something so stupid. Well, it was actually kind of noble. But it was the truth and it sort of gave a light feeling in his chest. He sighed as if a weight had been lifted off his chest.
Naruto, having seemed tired of being excluded from the conversation, spoke up.
"Yeah! They're right! It's only fair we all get dropped together from the program!" He supported. "Believe it!"
To be honest, he really didn't like the idea of getting dropped from the program, but Sasuke was right. It wasn't fair to Sakura and she deserved to pass. Yet, she asked if only Sasuke and him pass and she be dropped. He couldn't let her do that either.
Sakura's gaze switched between the two boys, eyes wide in disbelief. She had noticed the light red hue on Sasuke's cheeks and what he said shocked her to no end. It actually sent a warm feeling in her chest but she ignored it.
Kakashi was also surprised. He could see the sparks lighting in their eyes as they defended her. He could hear the honesty in Sasuke and Naruto's voice too. Behind the mask he wore was a small gentle smile. He felt proud.
"Is that what you want?" He asked. "For all of you to be dropped from the program...together?"
Naruto and Sasuke nodded firmly.
Kakashi was silent for a moment and the trio awaited his answer.
"I'm sorry, but you guys..." He trailed off, apologetically and their faces fell. "Pass!"
They stared at Kakashi with surprise.
There was a moment of silence before heads turned to the sudden sound of laughter.
They stared at Sakura, who clutched her stomach and was bending down with tears at the corners of her eyes, in surprise.
Why is she laughing? Because to her, the whole thing seemed unbelievably silly, like a joke. Sasuke defending her, it made her laugh. But she was really laughing because even though they are young, they acted so responsible, like adults.
And it made her want to cry, happy they defended her, so she laughed it off.
Soon, Naruto and Kakashi joined in and Sasuke smirked.
Later after they finished...
After they finished their laugh together, Kakashi decided that he'd head home, but Sakura knew he was heading to the bookstore again like usual.
As Kakashi walked away, he could hear Sakura walk away and he quickly disappeared to a perfectly good view of Sakura and Sasuke.
Come on, Sakura, He thought, trying to send a mental message to her. Don't just leave.
Sasuke stood up from his sitting position and with little dignity he had left, he called after her.
"Wait."
Unfortunately for Sasuke, Sakura pretended to have not heard him and kept on walking, forcing Sasuke to speak louder.
"Wait," He said louder. Still, she pretended to have not hear him.
Sasuke grinded his teeth together in frustration.
"Wait!" He yelled to her. Finally, satisfied she got the Uchiha to lower his pride, Sakura stopped and turned to look back at him, a pink eyebrow raised.
"Hm? What do you want? She said coldly. It wasn't as harsh as the last time she had talked to him. She stooped to his level now.
Sasuke could feel warmth spread from his neck to his face in the slightest and turned his head away from facing her.
Softly, he said,"Thanks."
In was barely audible but she heard it. Sakura was definitely surprised but she wouldn't show it to him. Sakura frowned and her brow furrowed in confusion. "What for?"
Sasuke's brow twitched in annoyance and a vein popped. "For...helping me."
Something clicked in Sakura's mind and her eyes widened a bit. "Oh, you mean when I wanted you guys to pass instead of me? Yeah, it was nothing. I simply did what anyone would have -"
"That's not what I meant," He cut in. Sasuke's face was hooded behind his bangs, but it was flushed red and he hoped Sakura didn't notice it. It would surely destroy what little pride he had left. Luckily, she didn't.
"Hm?" Sakura cocked her head to the side questionably.
Sasuke turned and started walking the opposite direction, towards his place.
"Tch. You know what I mean." Was all he said as he walked down the street.
"Wait!"
"Shut up."
Sakura's eyes trailed after him, still not getting what he meant. She was slightly pissed he just shut her up.
Then her eyes widened in recognition.
Before the test was over with Sakura and Sasuke...
FLASHBACK TIME: After Kakashi disappeared on them...
Sakura kneeled down and punched the ground in frustration, gritting her teeth together. There was a small crater
Kuso! I almost had him, She thought. She stood up and turned to walk out of the opened field to look for Kakashi when she heard a sound from behind her, like struggle.
She turned to look back and saw the man she despised the most struggling to free himself from the ground.
Sasuke struggled to move in his captivity and he looked very irritated. Sakura smirked at the sight and turned to walk away, but something stopped her.
She glanced back at him. For some reason, she couldn't stand that someone that killed so many innocent people couldn't get out of something as a simple Head Hunter Jutsu.
She frowned and before she knew what she was doing, she was already standing over him, glaring at him with irritation.
Sasuke glared right back and scowled. "What do you wa - hey! What are you - ?!"
"Shut up." Sakura's eyes were hooded as she gripped the top of his head firmly.
And with that, her enhanced strength got her to lift him out of the ground in one pull, gripping the top of his head.
Since Sasuke was a bit taller than her, she had to raise him up a little higher to get him on his feet and she let go of her skull-crushing grip. His clothes were covered in dirt and he bent down to dust himself off.
She lift without him knowing and when he finally looked up, he was surprised to see her already gone.
As Sakura ran through the forest, Mato spoke up.
Ya know, you can't blame him for what he did.
Sakura stayed silent.
END OF FLASHBACK
She said softly, "Hm. I simply did what any teammate would have done. We're a team and we're supposed to help eachother."
She said it so softly, Sasuke barely even heard her. But he did and he pretended to not have heard.
Sakura turned away and walked back towards home.
Unbeknownst to those two, Kakashi heard the whole thing from his hiding place and there was a smile on his lips.
Maybe their teamwork isn't incomplete after all, He thought, sort of relieved.
END OF THIS CHAPTER
WOW! That was longer than my last one! I hope you enjoyed it! That was really long. Gomen if it took a while!
Thank you for reading my story! ^_^
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